Week in Review

Soccer

  • The Seattle Sounders announced the addition of 11 families to its ownership group, including two high-profile couples — Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and his Grammy Award-winning wife, Ciara, and rapper Macklemore and his wife, Tricia Davis — and Microsoft’s CEO and CFO and their spouses. The group bought the stake from Hollywood producer Joe Roth, who was the team’s majority owner for eight years until passing the mantle to Adrian Hanauer in 2015.
  • The U.S. women’s soccer team ended its mediation discussions with the U.S. Soccer Federation without reaching an agreement on its gender-discrimination lawsuit against the governing body. A spokeswoman for the players said they now “eagerly look forward to a jury trial,” while a spokesman for the federation said that counsel for the women’s team took an “ultimately unproductive approach” as it allegedly presented “misleading information to the public.”

Media

  • BlackRock Inc. announced it will purchase a stake in Authentic Brands Group LLC, which owns Sports Illustrated. The deal is said to be worth roughly $875 million, making the investment giant the largest shareholder for the marketing and entertainment company that also owns Nine West and Aéropostale.

NFL

  • The NFL announced it is expanding its deal with Sportradar AG to allow the data company to distribute live information to sports betting operators, following the NBA, MLB and NHL in forming such an agreement. While terms were not disclosed, Sportsradar called the deal — which includes integrity services as well as the right to distribute live audio-visual game feeds to operators in some international markets — one of its largest global media rights agreements.
  • The NFL is partnering with Jay-Z, whose Roc Nation agency will co-produce the Super Bowl halftime show, a community concert at the Pro Bowl and choose entertainers to perform in televised NFL promotional spots throughout the season as part of the league’s “Inspire Change” social justice campaign. Commissioner Roger Goodell said the partnership, the terms of which were undisclosed, was about “appealing to a broader audience, particularly younger demographics.”

NBA

  • Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. Executive Vice Chairman Joe Tsai will pay about $3.5 billion to purchase the Brooklyn Nets and Barclays Center arena from current owner and Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, the team announced. Tsai, who previously bought a 49 percent stake in the team at a record $2.3 billion valuation for a U.S. pro sports franchise, had until 2021 to exercise his option to take full control of the Nets.
  • Following a drop in ratings last season, the NBA released a revised 2019-20 schedule that cuts the number of 10:30 p.m. ET tipoffs from 57 to 33. Players may also get more rest too: The average number of back-to-back games in the league is down to 12.4, compared with 13.3 last year.

NCAA

  • The NCAA reversed course on its new stipulations for agents looking to represent student-athletes testing the NBA Draft waters, altering a provision that would force representatives to obtain a four-year college degree. The about-face follows several days of blowback toward the governing body, with critics accusing it of unfairly targeting Rich Paul, LeBron James’ agent.
  • Ohio State University submitted a trademark application to the United States Patent and Trademark Office for “The Ohio State University” to put on school items, including t-shirts and baseball caps. According to an OSU spokesman, the school had 150 trademarks in 17 countries last fall, including for former head football coaches Urban Meyer and Woody Hayes.

Brands

  • Lawyer Michael Avenatti, who is facing federal charges on allegations that he extorted Nike Inc., and his legal team responded with allegations of their own, alleging in a court filing that executives with the sports apparel brand discussed paying $55,000 between 2019 first-round NBA Draft selections Zion Williamson (New Orleans Pelicans) and Romeo Langford (Boston Celtics). Avenatti, who denies demanding money from Nike, and his lawyers didn’t provide evidence that payments were made to the two players, both of whom signed with Nike following their collegiate careers.

NASCAR

  • Former NASCAR driver and current NBC analyst Dale Earnhardt Jr., his wife, daughter and two pilots are all expected to be OK after their private plane ran off a runway and caught fire at Elizabethton Airport in East Tennessee. Earnhardt’s sister, Kelley, said everyone was taken to a local hospital for further evaluation.

MLB

  • MLB and FanDuel Inc. announced a multiyear sports betting partnership, the third deal of its kind for the league, which has similar relationships in place with MGM Resorts International and DraftKings Inc. FanDuel, which is now a designated official gaming partner of MLB, will be able to use league marks and logos across its online sportsbooks and retail locations.

What’s Ahead

  • MLS reportedly plans to announce Tuesday that St. Louis has secured an expansion club.
  • The 2019 Little League World Series continues through Sunday in Williamsport, Penn., with the final televised at 3 p.m. ET on ABC.
  • The TOUR Championship begins Thursday at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta and continues through Sunday.
  • The 2019 college football season begins Saturday: Florida vs. Miami kick off in Orlando at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN followed by Arizona at Hawaii on CBS Sports Network at 10:30 p.m. ET.
  • The U.S. Open begins Aug. 26 at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center and continues through Sept. 8.
  • Duke and Alabama will play in the 2019 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game on Aug. 31 from Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. ABC will broadcast the matchup, which begins at 3:30 p.m. ET.
  • The 2019 NFL regular season kicks off with the Green Bay Packers at the Chicago Bears on Sept. 5. The NBC Thursday Night Football broadcast begins at 8:20 p.m. ET.
  • The AdvoCare Texas Kickoff college football game between Houston and Washington State is on Sept. 13 at NRG Stadium in Houston. It’ll kick off at 9:15 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Events Calendar (All Times Local)

08/20/2019
2019 SVG Soccer Summit
08/21/2019
2019 SVG Soccer Summit
08/22/2019
Digiday Hot Topic: Advanced TV
View full calendar

Understanding Gen Z: The Definitive Guide to the Next Generation

Based on nearly 1,000 survey interviews with 18-21 year-olds, Morning Consult’s ‘Understanding Gen Z’ report digs into the values, habits, aspirations, politics, and concerns that are shaping Gen Z adults and the ways they differ from the generations that came before them.

Download the full report →

Morning Consult Sports Top Reads

Morning Consult